Foundation Giving to Hispanic Causes Remains Flat

By Noelle Barton

American foundations commit only 1 percent of their giving to Hispanic causes—a share that has not changed in the past decade, according to a new study.

Giving to Hispanics in the United States from 2007 to 2009 averaged $206-million a year, and grants for Latin America averaged about $350-million a year. Most grants awarded to Hispanics support human services and health causes.

The survey by the Foundation Center and Hispanics in Philanthropy also found that 42 percent of grant dollars that supported Hispanics during that time went to nonprofits in the western United States, with 80 percent given in California.